Aftermath_The Armorian Chronicles

by Courtney Beals

  Eventually, Lyla found the stream and sat next to it. The moon was shining on it, and it was beautiful. She could fill the canteens and hurry back to camp, but she wanted to be alone for a little while. She had her weapons, so she was safe enough. She knew her sister meant well and wanted to cheer her up, but that’s not what she needed right now. After all they had been through, something was weird about Thomas not wanting to go with her, but she couldn’t figure it out. She thought that, since she wouldn’t be able to return to Armoria, he would leave with her. Did Armoria mean that much to him? Was she wrong for wanting him to leave with her? Armoria was his home. How could she expect him to leave it all behind for someone he had only known for a few weeks? But isn’t that what love is all about? Were you not supposed to make sacrifices for your significant other?

  She sat and thought to herself for a long while, until she thought it was time to return to camp. She started filling up the canteen bottles, but she stopped when she felt a presence around her. She slowly reached for her bow and placed an arrow against it. When she heard a stick break behind her, she turned with her arrow pulled back, ready to fire.

  “Woah, don’t shoot,” said the man as he stepped into the moonlight.

  “Thomas?” said Lyla as she lowered her bow. “What are you doing here?” She was happy to see him, but at the same time, she didn’t want to see him after how they left things in Armoria.

  “I had to come after you. I couldn’t let you go.”

  “I could have killed you,” she said. Her voice was low and angry. She started walking back toward camp with him right behind her.

  “Look, I’m sorry okay? I made a mistake.”

  “Seems to be happening an awful lot lately, doesn’t it?” said Lyla.

  “Lyla, please.” Thomas turned her around and spun her against a tree so she couldn’t walk away from him. “I love you more than anything.” Lyla took a moment before responding. She was no longer angry. Anytime he said those three words to her, her heart melted.

  “I love you too, and I’m sorry for expecting you to come with us. It was wrong of me.”

  “Don’t apologize,” said Thomas. “I shouldn’t have told you I wanted to stay.”

  “Then why…” Thomas knew what she was going to ask and didn’t want to have to tell her about his talk with William in his office, so he brushed her hair from her face and kissed her.

  Lilly was surprised to see Lyla smiling when she returned, and realized it was because she was with Thomas. “Where the heck did you come from?”

  “I changed my mind,” he said.

  “Uh, huh.” Lilly grabbed for the canteens, and realized one was empty and the other was only half full.

  “Oh, sorry about that,” said Lyla. “I was filling them when someone caught my attention.

  “That’s all right. I will fill them.”

  Lyla insisted on going with Lilly, but she said she would be fine, so she didn’t argue. Lyla had to remind herself that Lilly was not a child anymore, and had not been for a very long time. Lilly had grown up to be very strong-willed, and she could take care of herself, but Lyla still felt uneasy letting her go alone.

  Lyla and Thomas sat by the fire next to each other. They both stared at it while the coals burned, and the wood popped and cracked from the heat.

  How could something so mesmerizing be so deadly?

  “Lyla,” Thomas said. “There’s something I wanted to ask you, but I wasn’t sure how.” She looked at him and watched as the shadows danced around his face.

  “You can ask me anything,” she said. She had a stick in hand and was poking at the coals.

  “When you were attacked and you were lying in bed, I noticed the scar on your collarbone. I was just wondering…how did you get it?”

  Lyla tensed up, dropped the stick, and moved her hand to her collarbone.

  “You’re ashamed,” he said watching her.

  Lyla let out a deep breath. “Yes,” she said. She pulled her legs in close and wrapped her arms around them, trying to make herself as small as possible. She wanted to disappear. She knew he would one day ask, but she didn’t want him to. Really it was nothing to be ashamed of, and the scar wasn’t as bad as she made it out to be, but she hated it.

  “You have no reason to be. Our scars keep our pasts alive. Our scars remind us who we are and who we have become.”

  “Until the moment I met you, nothing in my life was going right. I don’t want to be reminded of my past. I want to forget it completely, but I can’t when I have this thing to remind me.” Lyla didn’t want this. She didn’t want to talk about it or remember how it happened, but she couldn’t keep it from him. They had no secrets, and she loved him.

  “I think your scar is beautiful.”

  “How could you think that?”

  “How could I not.” Thomas lifted his shirt and pointed out a scar on his chest, even though Lyla was more focused on his body. He was thin but he had chiseled abdominal muscles and a defined chest. She turned her attention to his scar. It was a small mark on his chest, but he wanted to point it out. He got it during the fire that burned his house down and killed his parents when he was younger.

  “If you’re not ready to tell me yet, you don’t have to. I just wanted to show you mine, so you will stop being so insecure about it.”

  “No, I will. It’s time I stop being so sensitive about it. I want to share everything with you, even the memories that I want to forget.” She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes.

  “Lilly and I were on an expedition. We were younger and did not have much experience going out on our own. We stumbled upon a group of Demorites. There were only two, but at the time it seemed like an army, and they came after us. One came after me and tried to carry me away. I pulled out a knife and drove it into his side. He stumbled and came after me again, so I drove it into his heart. He went down, but he was still alive, and at the time I didn’t understand how that could be possible.”

  Lyla was playing in the dirt around her, grabbing it in her hands and letting it fall back to the earth. She stopped for a moment, feeling Thomas watching her, then continued.

  “I heard Lilly scream. The other man went after her and had his knife raised. He was going to kill her without hesitation. I stepped in front of her and pushed her back, so his knife grazed me instead. I fell to the ground and he was going to finish me off, but Lilly got to him first. I remember watching her stab the Demorite repeatedly. It was like she lost herself and forgot who she was. That was the first time we had ever used our weapons. It would have been the first time we killed someone had they been able to die by our blades. She carried me all the way home, and my grandmother nursed me back to health.”

  “I’m sorry that it was so difficult for you growing up. I wish you could gave grown up in Armoria, but you are who you are because what you have been through. You are stronger because of it, and I love every part of you, even this part.” He put his hand over her jacket where her scar lay beneath.

  “If it weren’t for Lilly I wouldn’t have this scar, but I…” Before she could finish she was interrupted by Lilly, who had tears in her eyes.

  “Is that what you really think? That it was all my fault that you got that scar?” she cried.

  “Lilly, I don’t know what you heard, but you are mistaken. I didn’t…” Lilly cut her off once more. She wiped the tears that were streaming down her face.

  “I didn’t ask you to step in front of that blade for me. All these years I tried to make up for what happened because every time I saw your scar I thought I was the one to blame. I tried to help you get over it and make you understand that it was nothing to be ashamed of because you saved my life. You sacrificed yourself for me and I will be forever grateful, but if I knew you would feel this way after all this time I would have stopped you from doing what you did. I wish you had just let me die!”

  Lilly turned and ran off into the forest. She had no idea where she was going, but she wanted to get far away
. She needed time to think to herself. She pushed through bushes and tree limbs. One of the tree limbs swiped her cheek causing blood to rise to the surface.

  She came to a large tree and sat next to it. She held her head to her knees as she wept. How could her sister say something like that? She knew the only reason Lyla had that scar was because of her, but Lyla had never mentioned it aloud. In fact, she never talked about it, because she wanted to hide it and forget about it. She felt betrayed. She had never felt betrayed by her sister, and it caused her so much pain.

  After several minutes of crying, Lilly lifted her head away from her knees. She hadn’t realized how dark it was when she’d run into the woods. Her eyes adjusted to the silhouette of trees and wildlife, and she could hear an owl hooting in a tree not far from her. In the distance, she saw a flash of light, and it was moving toward her. She would have run toward camp to get away from it, but this didn’t seem like any ordinary light. It had a silvery glow that left a fading trail of light behind it as it moved.

  Lilly arose from the spot she where was sitting and began to move toward the light. As she moved closer she realized it was a bird, but it wasn’t. The silvery light was in the shape of a bird.

  This can’t be real.

  She couldn’t resist, and followed the bird through the woods until it came to a stop and perched itself upon a tree branch. Lilly was mesmerized by its beauty and reached out to touch it, when it disappeared. She heard rustling in the trees all around her. Four Demorites came out and surrounded her.

  Her heart began to race and her breathing grew heavy. She tried to yell for someone, but the words would not come. Her first and only thought was that they were there to kill her and she had to defend herself. She reached for a knife that she had in her boot. She would have grabbed her sword, but she left her weapons belt back at their camp.

  The Demorite in front of her came closer with his sword in hand. Lilly did not notice the Demorite behind her until he grabbed her and pinned her arms down. She screamed as loud as she could, but she didn’t know where she was. She could have been miles away from camp and no one would hear her. She struggled in his grasp, but he was very strong and he wouldn’t let go. The Demorite in front of her pulled her knife out of her hand and nodded to his companions as he turned away. A bag was placed over her head, and she felt something hit her head. The pain disappeared as darkness began to cloud her thoughts.

  William and Giselle arrived back at the camp shortly after Lilly had left. William gave Thomas an angry look, but he didn’t have time to say anything to him because Lyla was hysterical. She told them what had happened, and they all left in the direction Lilly had left to begin their search for her.

  They tracked her foot steps to a large tree. They could tell she had sat there before taking off in another direction by the dirt. They continued to follow her footsteps until they heard her scream. Lyla immediately started running toward Lilly’s screams, followed by the others. It felt like she had been running for ages and she wasn’t sure if she was still going in the right direction, but she couldn’t give up. She couldn’t leave Lilly out there all alone. Was she hurt? Was she in trouble?

  They came to an opening that was surrounded by trees and William noticed multiple footprints in the dirt. There had been some sort of a struggle, and Lilly was nowhere to be found.

  Lyla’s eyes turned to a large tree to her right to where something was hanging on it. Once she got closer she realized it was Lilly’s knife stuck in the tree holding up an envelope. On the outside was her name written in fine ink. She gasped. Someone had planned this. She was meant to be here and find this envelope. Carefully, she removed the knife and opened the envelope, reading what had been written.

  Lyla,

  As I am sure you are aware by now, I have sent my men to retrieve your sister. I thought she would be an extra motivator, just in case you were thinking of double-crossing me. With the help of your grandfather’s invention of the ‘Bird of Light’ it was proven to be quite an easy task. Continue to your grandfather’s house and find me what I seek. Your dreams will show you the way. Do not disappoint me or test my patience. Otherwise, I will be forced to terminate your precious sister. You have one month.

  †Damien†

  Lyla threw the letter to the ground and pulled her hands to her head. Tears began to flood her eyes, not out of sadness, but of anger. How could she let this happen? She was supposed to protect her sister and now she was in the hands of that monstrous villain.

  William picked up the letter and read it aloud. Horror washed over their faces as he read it. He read it to himself a second time. Maybe the reason for their grandfather’s capture was for his inventions. Maybe this had been Damien’s intention after all, and he was using their grandfather to get to them. Your dreams will show you the way, he mouthed.

  “He knows,” William said. Everyone turned to him and he walked over to Lyla. She had stopped crying, but her eyes were splotched with red spots. “Damien is not controlling your dreams, but he has access to them. He knows what you dream and what you see. He knows that your nightmare is beginning to show you the bigger picture. Your dream will reveal what we are looking for, and whatever it is resides in your house. That is what he is saying in the letter.”

  “We need to get to the house tonight,” said Lyla. “We can’t waste any time.”

  No one disagreed, and they walked back to their camp to gather their things. The house wasn’t much further. William guessed they would be there in two hours, and he was about right. They had arrived just shy of two hours. They were all exhausted and ready to get some rest. They put the horses in the stables and walked to the house.

  The door was slightly open, so they all pulled out a weapon just as a precaution. They put them away when they realized no one was in the house, but the house was a complete disaster. Cabinets were open, glass, along with many other items, was broken and thrown on the floor. The nursery room door was open and everything inside was ruined. The crib was smashed to pieces, the rocking chair was broken, and the dresser was knocked over. In a way, Lyla was relieved. This room haunted her dreams for so many years. At least now it would only exist in her dreams.

  Lyla’s room was a disaster. Her books were thrown on her bed and her floor. Clothes were lying everywhere as well.

  The barriers were down, and Damien had sent his men to find whatever it was he was looking for. According to Damien, they were very unsuccessful. Lyla hated seeing the house this way. It was just another tragedy to add to her day, to her life.

  Lyla picked up the mess in her room before lying down. William went in her room to see how she was feeling before he went to sleep. As soon as he asked how she was, she started to break down and cry again. He held her in his arms and comforted her. Lyla wanted her sister back more than anything, but it wasn’t going to be easy.

  William knew how she was feeling. He wanted her back just as much as she did. He had always loved the twins even without knowing them. After spending the last few weeks with them, he hated the thought of losing them. He wanted to ease some of the pain she was feeling, and began to tell her a story.

  “Once there was a young man from Armoria.” Lyla continued to lay her head against his chest as she listened. “Once a week, he would go to earth to different farms, collecting and selling crops and meat. He stumbled upon a beautiful cottage home, and he passed it every day. One day, he saw a beautiful lady outside watering the flowers. He thought she was so beautiful that he had to know what her name was. He casually rode up to her house and asked for her name. She was startled at first, but she found the man to be quite charming. Every day since, he stopped by just to talk to her. Eventually, he came to her just as he always had and wanted to confess his love for her, so he proposed. She accepted, and after they got married, they had two beautiful baby girls. They loved each other very much.” Lyla pulled away and looked into his eyes.

  “That’s how you met Mom?” she asked.

  “Yes,” he said
with a slight smile.

  “It was a beautiful story, though I wish it had a better ending.”

  “I as well, darling.”

  Lyla hugged him once more. “I love you, Dad.” William felt… relief? Happiness? He wasn’t sure what it was. This was the first time Lyla had ever called him “Dad” instead of William.

  “I love you, too,” he said, squeezing her tighter before letting go. “All right, I think it is time we get some rest. If you need anything I will be right down the hall.” He left the room, and shortly after, Thomas entered.

  He kissed her and said goodnight. He was walking out of her room when she got his attention, not wanting him to leave.

  “Thomas,” she said. She was biting her lower lip and moving her hand through her hair. “Will you stay with me tonight? I just don’t want to be alone right now.” Thomas smiled.

  “There’s nowhere else I would rather be.”

  William was staying in her grandparents’ room and Giselle was in Lilly’s room. With nowhere else to sleep, Thomas had made arrangements to sleep on the couch, and Lyla didn’t want that. With Lilly’s kidnapping and the flush of memories rushing through her, she wanted him to hold her all night long.

  He shut the door and walked over to her bed. She moved over to the side of the bed that was pushed up against the wall and made room for him, which wasn’t much because she had a twin-size bed, but Lyla didn’t mind because that meant she had to be closer to him. He slid in under the covers and wrapped his arms around her. She rested her head on his chest, breathing in his sweet scent.

  “Thomas?”

  “Yes?”

  “I know I try to be tough, especially for Lilly, but I’m terrified. Do you ever feel that way?”

  “I’m terrified of a lot of things,” said Thomas. “The night I thought I was going to lose you made me feel more terrified than I ever have. I believe people who are afraid of nothing have no heart.”